Live From MLB All-Star 2024: ESPN Adjusts Storytelling Approach To Meet New Rules at Home Run Derby ESPN's Phil Orlins: We thought the rules changes were absolutely necessary' By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital Monday, July 15, 2024 - 2:42 pm
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ESPN's midsummer tradition of broadcasting the Major League Baseball Home Run Derby (8 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN2) has a unique challenge this year: telling the story of an event that is introducing a new format and scoring system.
Over the past few years, the pacing has grown so fast that, for many viewers, the event became difficult to follow. Multiple home-run balls in the air and the inability to truly appreciate each long ball led ESPN and the league to test out a new approach.
The 2024 MLB Home Run Derby takes place at Globe Life Field in Arlington, TX.
For a brief primer on the format changes for this year's Home Run Derby, let's start at the top. In the first round, instead of the previous head-to-head bracket format, the four players with the most home runs will advance to the semifinals, where the top four will be seeded head-to-head knockout-style. The final round will consist of just 27 pitches.
MLB and ESPN collaborated on the rule changes to reduce the event's frantic nature of the past few years and to help make the action easier to follow on TV. Batters will be limited to three minutes and a maximum of 40 pitches in the first two rounds, which will move things along and keep multiple home-run balls from landing simultaneously, which led to the confusion for viewers.
We thought the rules changes were absolutely necessary, says ESPN VP, Production, Phil Orlins. It's still really fast. I mean, 40 pitches in three minutes is fast, but it's not out of control. I think we'll be able to talk about it and document each home run, each pitch, each swing. It still requires a split screen to be able to do that, and there's still going to be two balls in the air, but it had gotten so fast that there were not only two balls in the air but two balls landing at the same time. Which, even in the two-box [format], is tough to follow. It's hard to shoot the batter and shoot another box for the ball landing and have two balls landing in different places at the same time.
Karl Ravech returns as the voice of the Derby with analysts Eduardo P rez and Todd Frazier. Frazier, the 2015 Home Run Derby Champion, has called Little League World Series games for ESPN and debuts as Home Run Derby analyst.
On the production side are a few changes to the on-screen graphical presentation and a repositioning of some cameras inside Globe Life Field. ESPN is bringing 4DREPLAY technology to this year's Derby, positioning the multicamera system directly behind home plate, only 16 ft. or so from the batter. It's the closest ESPN has ever been able to get to the plate in a baseball scenario. The half-moon-shaped 4DREPLAY camera ring features 16 cameras.
It has had good successes for us, but it has its best successes when it works in close proximity, says Orlins, noting successful implementations of the tech on UFC fights and at the Little League World Series. In the latter, ESPN was able to position the cameras in the front row behind home plate, about 30 ft. from home. Being about to get even closer here for the Home Run Derby is an exciting prospect: That's just game-changing - getting down there, spinning, and getting great shots.
Here's a 4DREPLAY clip from the MLB Korea Series at the start of this baseball season:
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Other speciality cameras are deployed as well. The two-point cabled DEFY DactylCam is installed at Globe Life Field. ESPN's internal drone group is here but able to fly only outside the roofed stadium.
In addition, Orlins notes, the production team is moving the manned high-home positions higher in the ballpark and adding some down-the-line shots to better diversify the images that producer Scott Matthews and director Doug Holmes can take.
It's a challenge to follow the ball [in the Home Run Derby], says Orlins. We've gone with two or three high-homes side-by-side this year. We decided to go with equally high positions down-the-line to make the cuts from one [ball in the air] to the other - that happens fairly quickly - not look as jarring. Having down-the-line is a little change so the shots don't look so identical.
Here awaiting implementation at the 2024 MLB Home Run Deby, the 16-camera 4DREPLAY system will be deployed behind home plate.
It's clearly a year of thoughtful experimentation and tinkering for the operations team: Remote Operations Manager Paul Horrell, Remote Operations Specialist Kevin Cleary, and Project Manager Carla Ackels. Additionally, Director of Production Jim Thomas plays a key role in the show.
Returning this year to the broadcaster's Home Run Derby coverage is the Statcast edition airing on ESPN2 alongside the traditional broadcast. It features more graphics and a stats-heavy presentation with hosts Kevin Brown, Jessica Mendoza, and Mike Petriello. The Statcast alternative broadcast is overseen by producer Andy Jacobson and director Mike Griffin. ESPN's Will Gairing, Joe Durante, and Tyler Churchill play key roles in data integration on both broadcasts. Meanwhile, Major League Baseball is also heavily involved in the alternative feed, with assistance from MLB SVP, Broadcasting, Ryan Zander; VP, Technical Operations and Broadcasting, Mark Ellinson; Senior Technical Manager Kyle Burke; and Product Manager Simon Chattington.
